In Kabul, Afghanistan the city mourned the death of a supposedly mentally ill woman named Farkhunda who was believed to have been ordered to death by a local Mullah, according to CNN. Reports, however, dispute that she was mentally ill and the killing was motivated by revenge. The city’s head of criminal investigation Mohammad Farid Afzali suggested Farkhunda suffered from an unspecified psychiatric illness. There are conflicting reports, as a neighbor told the Associated Press that she was nearing the end of a religious studies course and preparing to become a teacher. “Everyone respected her, she was very religious and never left her home without covering her face with a hijab,” said Mirwais Afizi, 40, who said he had lived on the same lane as Farkhunda’s family all his life. “We never heard anything about her being mentally ill. She was about to graduate,” he said. An interior ministry spokesman said earlier that Farkhunda’s family was staying in protective care as they could be in danger. The attack took place last week when a mob of male attackers beat and kicked Farkhunda age 27, threw her off a bridge, and then cast her burning body into a river. Supposedly her crime was burning pages of the Quran, but her father disputes the allegation saying she would not do that to the holy book. Farkhunda’s father Nadir, told CNN affiliate TOLOnews “she was a religious teacher who taught the Quran to children. He said there was no way his daughter would burn pages of the holy book, which has been cited as the motive for the horrific attack.” The criminal investigation by Gen Mohammad Zahir revealed no evidence had been found to support those allegations against the murdered woman. “We have reviewed all the evidence and have been unable to find any single iota of evidence to support claims that she had burned a Qur’an,” Zahir said. “She is completely innocent.” Afghanistan’s Interior Minister Noorul Haq Ulumi said on Monday in statement to the parliament there were 26 people arrested in connection with the murder. President Ashraf Ghani condemned Farkhunda’s killing as a “heinous attack,” reported in The Guardian. Supposedly, authorities are investigating further who instigated the mob assault. There are allegations that police stood by and did nothing to stop the attack, Ghani said. If true, this revealed “a fundamental issue” that the country’s police were too focused on the fight against the Taliban insurgency to concentrate on community policing.

The New York-based group Human Rights Watch got involved saying in a statement that "the brutal murder of a vulnerable woman by a mob on Kabul's streets" calls for the punishment of police officers who took no action to stop the killing, reported by AP.

Subsequently 13 police were suspended at the same time the suspects in the attack were arrested. Although in Afghanistan this kind of violence is unconstitutional, the guarantees of equality for women are not respected, and they are treated as inferior and violence against them goes unpunished. It is the responsibility of the new Afghan President Ghani to change the dynamic and send a message that heinous acts against women will not be tolerated and perpetrators will be caught and punished. Ghani put women’s rights and equality at the forefront of his presidential campaign last year and has given his wife, Rula, a prominent public profile. A Christian of Lebanese descent, she has spoken for women’s rights in Afghanistan-- a country named often by international rights groups as one of the world’s worst places to be a woman.Revenge killing by mullah Farkhunda's parents believe the killing was instigated by a local mullah of the Shah-e-Do Shamshera Mosque in Kabul, who became angry because Farkhunda had accused him of distributing false tawiz. Tawiz are pieces of paper containing verses of the Quran which can be worn as pendants or attached to clothing to ward off evil and bring good luck. TOLOnews reported that "in order to save his job and life," the mullah reportedly began shouting accusations that Farkhunda had burned the Quran, they said. If a mullah wields the power to order the death of another human being by merely making a public statement, the government must instill restrictions and consequences for death threats. In the three articles read in the preparation of this story, none of them reported an arrest of the mullah at the Shah-e-Do Shamshera Mosque. Arrests of perpetrators and police were conducted, but there was no mention of the mullah being arrested for his participation in initiating the attack. Because the mullah was the primary instigator in the killing of Farkhunda, he must be held responsible. Resourceshttp://www.cnn.com/2015/03/23/asia/afghanistan-woman-killed/index.htmlhttp://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/mar/22/afghan-woman-beaten-to-death-kabul-mob-buried

I am glad the president of Afghanistan moved expeditiously to make arrests and issue disgust at the heinous act. These kinds of cultural/religious zealots need to know there will be consequences.

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eileen

24/3/2015 10:22:01 am

They do Dava. I cannot imagine what it is like for the people who live in Afghanistan. And for women and children...

Reply

B. McPherson

24/3/2015 03:57:05 pm

Of note was that women carried her coffin for burial as a protest. Women in that culture are normally forbidden to attend funerals. I heard an Afghani woman once say that to kill a woman is of no more consequence than killing a bird. Women's rights need to be constantly defended. Thanks for the report. Horrible crime.

Reply

eileen

25/3/2015 03:57:45 am

When I worked with a woman from Wales a few years back she told me traditionally the women did not attend a funeral only the men. When her Mum died she and the other women stayed home

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Dava Castillo

25/3/2015 11:35:32 am

Thanks for reading and commenting Barbara.

Attendance at funerals by woman is one more thing that needs to be reassessed. This goes along with other freedoms for women to make their own choices and not be dominated by archaic dictates that have no place in the 21st century. In a free society, they could even drive themselves to a funeral!

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Dava Castillo

is retired and lives in Clearlake, California. She has three grown
children and one grandson and a Bachelor’s degree in Health Services
Administration from St. Mary’s College in Moraga California. On the
home front Dava enjoys time with her family, reading, gardening, cooking
and sewing. After writing for four
years on the news site Allvoices.com on a variety of topics including
politics, immigration, sustainable living, and other various topics,
Dava has more than earned the title of citizen journalist. Politics is one of her passions, and she follows current events regularly.
In addition, Dava has written about sustainable living and
conservation. She completed certification at the University of
California Davis to become a Master Gardener and has volunteered in
that capacity since retirement.

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